Where Have You Been
by darkgirl3
Summary: This is my take on where exactly Tyler was since he never answered Caroline's calls about her dad dying. Read and Review hope you enjoy.


**AN: I wrote this this morning because I wanted an explanation of why Tyler wasn't there. I thought this would be a good one. Hope you enjoy I own nothing not beta'd. Mention of character death.**

**Where Have You Been**

Caroline was sitting at her dad's grave. It hurt that he was gone, she'd pleaded with him to stay, to become a vampire. He said he didn't believe in it. He was gone forever and now she had to live. They had made up after what he'd done to her. The two men that meant the most to here were gone now. Tyler was Klaus puppet and her dad was dead. She wished she knew where Tyler was at it had been three days. She was beyond worried about him and pissed too. She heard somebody come up behind her in a hurry and she about jumped when she looked up.

"WHERE HAVE YOU BEEN?" she yelled at him, she was pissed at Tyler right now and he was just showing up now. She stood up and realized he looked like he'd been through hell too. His eyes mirrored hers; she pulled him into a hug letting the rest of her tears out.

"I'm sorry, I was trying to turn without feeling pain, I had to see you again," his voice was almost gone from the times he'd screamed before finally it had happened. He couldn't believe it had been three days since dad had died, four since he'd started this. Her mom told him what hadn't been on the voicemail. "He said till I didn't feel pain I couldn't see you any more," he held her not wanting to let go. He'd worked for this, three days of being in pain. His bones had broken over and over until he didn't feel it any more. After the last time he'd been in wolf form for almost twelve hours the longest yet.

Caroline let out a sob; her dad was trying to protect her now, even though he was gone. She pulled away looking up at Tyler, "You weren't even there, I thought something went wrong and…" she hugged him again thanking God that it wasn't Tyler's doing. He wasn't in control of that sire bond so he couldn't have known if he had. She'd asked Elena if she thought he could have done it and she'd said no.

"I've been the wolf for two days of and on, I wanted to prove to him I could break it," he had and he didn't feel a pull to Klaus, didn't feel the need to be loyal to that bastard. "I'm yours if you want me back, I swear to you I'm me again," he'd been too late to let her dad see, but her mom knew. "I love you, Caroline and I'll spend every day making it up to you," he said.

He didn't understand why everybody that tried to help him died. Mason, Jules, Damon almost died last year, but Stefan saved him. If he hadn't begged Klaus to save Caroline she'd be dead, and now Caroline's dad was gone. Jeremy almost died too if he thought about it, and Alaric about paid that price. He thank God for those magic rings, he had to make right. He'd screwed everything that he'd worked for up. He had never thought that a van would run Jeremy down or that he'd have that happen to Alaric. It pissed him off when Klaus had done that, but he couldn't do anything, not till now.

Caroline smiled through her tears. "I love you too, Tyler, I never stopped," he was the one person she could tell everything to before Klaus had killed him making him a hybrid. She could tell that he was different just by looking into his eyes. "Can we sit here for while? I just…"

Tyler nodded looking over at the headstone. He'd gotten here as fast as he could with his vampire speed. He sat down beside her against the headstone in front of her dad's. He wrapped his arm around her pulling her close. He heard her crying again before realizing there was matching ones on his face. The man had tried to fix his daughter, and then he'd been wiling to help him to show he had changed. He'd told her dad how much he loved Caroline, and he did. He tried putting her first told Klaus no on biting her then it just happened. He had proved his love to her though; he was free of Klaus' sire bond.

He lost track of the times he turned, he'd used the fact he'd almost killed Caroline and then her dad to get angry. It had worked the thought of losing Caroline because he couldn't control himself. He'd made himself turn over and over. The thought of getting to be with her again when he broke the bond kept him going. He'd gotten stronger chains that had held him after what had happened. His throat hurt from the previous screams of pain, but it would heal.

Caroline laid her head on his shoulder glad to feel his arms around her again. She'd been lonely ever since homecoming that it had ached inside of her. She looked down at the bracelet he'd given her and smiled. She hadn't put the one Klaus left on. She'd put it in her drawer, she had no use for it her heart, beating or not was Tyler's.

There weren't words for how he felt about everything he'd done. It was the heightened emotions from the werewolf and vampire combined. He felt twice as guilty for what he'd done. "I broke the bond, I promised him that I would and I did. You were the reason I did it, I couldn't take being alone any more, I drove my friends away, I drove you away," he'd change everything if he could. Go back in time some how and fix everything he had done. He'd told her what he'd said on her birthday when he'd given her the bracelet didn't matter any more. He now could put her first and mean it.

Caroline turned his face so he was looking at her, "You can mend those bridges Tyler, I forgave you for biting me," she had even before he'd showed up with her dad. He had no control; it wasn't his fault it had happened. He'd told Klaus no and the bastard still had made him do it. "My dad told me everything before he died," she bit back another round of tears because thinking how her dad wasn't here to see this. Tyler had broken the bond to be with her and it hurt her that he couldn't show her dad. Her mom knew though, it was why he was here now.

"I just wish everybody would stop dying on us," he said, it wasn't their times to go, not yet.

"With you back on our side we have more help now, and we don't have to be alone any more," she said holding his hand before she stood up bringing him with her. "There so much to catch you up on, I missed you so much," she hugged him again glad to feel him against her. She didn't think she could let go of him. The thought of him being a dream made her heartache, but he wasn't. He was still as warm even as a vampire he was radiating heat. She wanted to get out of here; she'd been sitting here all afternoon.

"Give me a minute," he said looking over at the fresh grave.

Caroline nodded before she let her hand drop watching Tyler walk over to her dad's grave. Just months ago he'd wanted to kick her dad's ass for what he'd done. Now they both had him to think for Tyler being himself again. She let the tears fall against listening to what he said. She wished her dad could see him right now.

"I did it, I broke the bond, and I promise you that I will take care of your daughter," Tyler said looking at the head stone. He owed his freedom from Klaus to Bill, "I'm going to spend the rest of my life loving her and keeping her safe too," he would make all the wrongs that he had done right. The first one was to love Caroline till the day that somebody killed them. When she died he was going too because these last few months with out her had about killed him. Tyler closed his eyes against the falling tears, "You helped me and I will be forever grateful to you, thank you for my freedom," he turned around going back over to Caroline taking her hand again.

"Let's get out of here," Caroline said taking a look back at her dad's grave, "Thank you, daddy for giving him back to me," she said before they left the cemetery. She had walked here from her house so they started the walk back. They could catch up on the way back; it was a mile to her house from here. Having Tyler beside her felt right again even in all the wrong that was happening.

She no longer had to worry if he would run back to Klaus and against his will tell the original hybrid everything. She had a peace of mind that even though things were screwed up, with Tyler here she would make it through. She had the man that she loved back and with him nothing seemed impossible anymore. They would find the person responsible for her dad's death, for Alaric almost dying again too.

Tyler thought about the last words he'd heard from her dad before he'd left his hospital room. It was the last time he had saw her dad before going back to the cellar.

_I'm proud of you _

There had been a half an hour conversation before that, but that was the words that stuck. The ones he'd heard when he'd left the man in that hospital bed. Caroline was the only one that had told him that before now. He hoped he'd made her dad proud because it had made him want it more. Knowing somebody else was proud of him.

**THE END**


End file.
